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jenna: right now the white house and congress have just one month to prevent tax hikes and spending cuts that really could send the economy according to some right back into a recession. we are glad you are with us on this friday, everybody, i'm jenna lee. jon: i'm jon scott. president obama offering his opening bid to avoid the fiscal cliff but it's not going over well at all with republicans. house speaker john boehner saying no progress has been made in negotiations. mike emanuel is live on capitol hill now. what are the republican complaints, mike, and how are they pushing back at the president? >> reporter: senator john john cornyn who is a member of the rupp leadership says he thinks

president obama wants to go over the fiscal cliff by proposing higher taxes, no spending cuts and no plans to save entitlements. with president obama going to pennsylvania today, the house republican whip, kevin mccarthy's office put out a video profiling a small business nearby in pennsylvania that would get hurt by a tax hike. >> i'm jerry gorsky from an engineering company. however good or bad we do is my income. this notion of $250,000 being top 2% or the wealthy people in america ignores the way most small businesses work in america. >> reporter: i mentioned president obama is going out on the trail, if you will in pennsylvania to sell his arguments. one would expect we would hear some sort of response from speaker john boehner after that. jon. jon: what are the democrats saying? i mean about these g.o.p. complaints? what is your response?

>> reporter: they are saying republicans if you don't like the president's plan, where is your own plan? they are asking for specifics on revenue in terms of tax revenue. they are also asking for specifics on what republicans want to do to entitlements. house democratic leader nancy pelosi is not talking about more spending cuts. >> the president has been clear and we support him on holding firm to the 250 tax cuts -- expiration of tax cuts for people making over $250,000 a year. that would be part of a big, bold and balanced package that has big cuts. we've already voted for over a trillion dollars in cuts. revenues are needed and job creation is essential to reducing the deficit. >> reporter: now one weapon that the administration has at its disposals treasury secretary timothy geithner could tell companies to freeze the withholding rates for those making up to $250,000.

i should be clear that geithner has not threatened to do so, in fact he's down-playing it. but if the congress and the white house fail to get a deal geithner could act on his own in the new year to freeze withholding rates for those making up to 250k. jon. jon: interesting. mike emanuel in the capitol building, thank you. jenna: the president's opening bid to avoid the fiscal cliff, already called a none starter by republicans including this $1.6 trillion in new taxes. 400billion in spending cuts, tbd specifically on that. a little extra cash for infrastructure spending, republicans call that stimulus. and a plea for new powers to raise the debt ceiling without having to go directly to congress. joe trippi is howard dean's former campaign manager and a fox news contributor. good to see you this morning. >> good to see you, jenna. jenna: as opening bids go what

do you make of that one. >> it makes sense that this is the president's opening bid. republicans ran around saying his only answer is to raise taxes on the rich and play class warfare, and we have a spending problem, not a revenue problem. so if the president says look, i want to raise taxes 1.6 trillion it should be no surprise. if you want to cut spending more put your specific cuts in medicare on the table and let's start having the negotiations. it makes sense to me that he would start low on the spending cuts and let the republicans take the hit, like he's taking it on taxes to explain why they want to do more spending cuts than he's proposed. jenna: assuming we get more specifics from either side. you're the perfect person to ask about perception versus reality. that is something that plays very big in politics. here is what one congressman from new york had to say, i'm

sorrow new jersey had to say about all of this quoted in the tkwau journal today. that is jon coughing up a lung in the pwafbg ou back of our studio. quote, there is a public choreography, then there is the real choreography. to reach a deal it has to look like there was a lot of fighting before the deal was actually reached. is that what is going on here, joe, the public is getting the sense that everyone is fighting but behind the scenes there is a deal that is really not too far away? >> yeah, i think a large part of that is true. look, republicans have got to be able to say, we fought and fought and fought, but the stubborn president and those democrats made us give on taxes, we didn't want to raise taxes, we never wanted to do that but we had to to save the country from going over the cliff. the democrats get their walk out after the big fight and say, we never wanted to cut medicare and the other programs that were cut but those mean, stubborn

republicans made us do it to stop the country from going over the cliffment we had to compromise, neither side is happy, but they all get to go back to their districts and make the case that whatever horrible thing they did was caused by their willingness to compromise with the other party to stop the country from going over the cliff. that is what is going on here. in all that you could have -- jenna: doesn't that theater sort of stin stink for us, the public that has to sit here and watch that. >> it does. part of it is also a game of chicken where they both swerve off the road and we do go over the fiscal cliff. there is a big penalty to be paid for it. i think the american people were hoping that both sides would be able to come together. hopefully they will. it's hard to say whether behind the scenes things are better than we think or 0 whether this rile is a titanic battle that is

going to be fought out and we're going to go over the cliff. no one knows that for sure yet. jenna: that is the truth. how do you think this sets us up for the year ahead. we have some really big challenges that our don't tree facescountry faces. your thoughts and how big of a role party is in this problem, and in not being able to really get any resolutions, and kick the can down the road. is the party the problem or is it something else? >> i think a lot of it is both parties and problems within both parties. i think a lot of the players that are sitting here already today making these decisions are looking at the 2014 re-election bid, and they are not worried about the other party. their seats are safe for the most part, republican seat versus a democratic challenger. what they are worried about is they vote for a tax increase here and they are challenged in the primary, in a prime air

remember next year in 2014 and lose to somebody that was stronger on taxes, and the same thing over on the democratic side. if they give up -- if an incumbent member gives up on medicare cuts for instance and he goes into his district, he's challengeable in his or her primary by somebody more to the left on that issue. i think you're seeing the parties have problems, skeu skizms between hard liners in both parties that are creating some of the problem here. jenna: and how politics plays into the future of our country will be a big conversation, joe. hope to have it with you soon. thank you for your time today. >> thanks, jenna. jon: my lungs are back with me i'm happy to report. the gaza conflict sparking new interest in israel's iron dome defense system. the jewish state using the technology successfully to defend itself against hamaz rockets. now the u.s. military wants an

iron dome of its own. jennifer griffin is live from the pentagon. could the iron dome protect u.s. bases overseas for instance, jennifer? >> reporter: it probably could. the army has a system but it works differently shooting multiple round of bullets rather than missiles at incoming mortars and rockets. missile defense can be very expensive. $90,000 per rocket for instance fired by the iron dome system. yesterday at the pentagon defense secretary panetta received from the defense minister of israel a mold of a tamir missile, part ever the iron dome system that worked so well during the gaza conflict. the u.s. army is investigating buying an iron dome-type system. we already invested $270 million in sealing the dome. they sealed it in record time,

three years, despite many skeptics in israel as well as in the pentagon, jon. jon: if we helped fund the system, and our technology, presumably is part of it, why not just buy an iron dome from israel complete? >> reporter: it's a good question. we've learned that raytheon, an antimissile defense manufacturer has proposed something called battle dome back in november, early november, around november 11th. according to some sources rafel would like to sell the iron dome to the u.s. military. it would be cheaper than starting from scratch for the u.s. taxpayer, especially since the u.s. has already invested $275 million in the israeli system. this is a game changer in modern warfare. >> the 1991 first gulf war i was the liaison for the israeli military with the american military bringing in the patriot missiles to israel, which was a

great show of strength to see the americans bring in antimissile systems but they didn't work. we shot at about 40 scud missiles aimed at tel-aviv, we hit maybe one and created two scud missiles. >> reporter: raytheon built the patriot missiles that didn't perform so well during the first gulf war. it is a problem of israel's rafel here in the u.s. some here are wondering whether the u.s. should benefit from the money it's already invested in iron dome rather than spending years and hundreds of millions of dollars to develop a new system, jon. jon: jennifer griffin, interesting stuff at the pentagon. a lot of questions to be answered. thank you. jenna: mounting tensions in egypt at this hour as we continue to watch thousands gather in square r-frplt square r-frpltahrir square.

i believe that is a live picture you have there. it appears to be fueling an already volatile situation between the opposition and the new government in egypt. steve harrigan is streaming live from cairo. >> reporter: this attempt by the government to push through a draft constitution in one day's time was an effort to stem the process it appears to have backfired. we are seeing greater numbers of opposition protestors out on the street today, they seem to be energized by this move by the government. already sharp criticism of this new draft constitution, criticism that it fails to protect the rights of women, also concerns about the role of islamic law in this new constitution. the next step is for a referendum. president morsi has 30 days to put it to a vote across the nation. he has said when the constitution is ratified he will give up the extraordinarys he assumed last week. it was that move by the president that really kicked off these processes. we have large crowds now of anti-more se anti-moris

demonstrators and tphopl we will probably see large crowds of pro-mori demonstrators. back to you. jenna: steve harrigan with the sounds of the street behind him. steve thank you. jon: a ten-year-old girl vanished from her neighborhood in florida nearly two decades ago. now police arresting and charging a man in her kidnapping and murder. we will update you on this decades' old mystery. new information about u.n. ambassador susan rice had access to before she described the cause of the libyan terror attack that left four americans dead. okay, here's the plan. you have a plan? first we're gonna check our bags for free, thanks to our explorer card. then, the united club. my motr was so wrong about you. next, we get priory boarding on our flight i booked with miles. all because of the card. and me. okay, what's the plan?

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jon: right now new information on crime stories we are keeping an eye on. for the first time military prosecutors are going face to face with the army private accused of sending hundreds of thousands of classified documents to wikileaks. bradley manning testified

yesterday in support of a defense motion claiming his confinement has been so harsh his case should be dismissed. in colorado police are searching for a 13-year-old, boy gone for 12 years. they are looking for any information on dillon wine's whereabouts. his father's home was the last place he was seen. nearly two decades after a ten-year-old girl vanished from her florida neighborhood a man is now charged with murdering her. police arresting chester dwayne price in connection with the kidnapping and murder of andrea gale parsons. the sheriff telling reporters he hopes there is enough evidence to get a conviction. andrea's body has never been found. jenna: new questions right now on the terror attacks in benghazi and what u.n. ambassador susan rice knew before she spoke for the administration in high profile interviews about the event. chief intelligence correspondent catherine herridge is live in washington with more. >> reporter: since the closed

classified briefings on capitol hill two weeks ago lawmakers stressing that ambassador rice had access to the unclassified intelligence on the act. a leading republican in the senate tells fox that the classified information included the president's daily brief, known as the bdp it contains the most highly classified intelligence and in this case included compelling evidence in al-qaida's involvement in the benge arattack. here is susan collins speaking to fox news. >> she had access to the full presidential daily brief on intelligence, so she was well informed and knew that our intelligence community felt that there were ties to al-qaida affiliates that were involved in the attack. >> reporter: collins said she believes the white house asked rice to go on the talk shows because she was politically

reliable. jenna: why is there still so much confusion over the talking points. >> reporter: it's an important question. even democrats other than intelligence committee yesterday why it took so lightning for the intelligence committee to assess there was not a demonstration outside of the consulate when the attack happened. >> there are two critical pieces of information that i think shed the most light on the fact there was no process, the interview with the people on the ground, as well as the video evidence. that took time, in some cases days, in some cases more than a week, and that accounted for a lot of the inaccurate information initially. and one of the questions that i've asked is why did it take as long as it did. >> reporter: this gap between the intelligence showing there was no demonstration and working its way throughout system into documents like the pdb raises whether stove piping one of the problems that lead to the 9/11 attacks in fact was once again

in play in the benghazi attack as well, jenna. jenna: catherine herridge live in d.c., thank you. jon: a train carrying dangerous chemicals overturns in new jersey. the latest on the scramble to contain the spill coming up. and could your couch be making you sick? a look at a startling new study on what might be lingering in your sofa.

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jon: right now dangerous chemicals are spilling into a creek after a train derailment. emergency crews are there where people are reporting respiratory problems. harris is following the story from our breaking news desk. >> reporter: new details are just coming in in the past few minutes. let's go to the pictures first. this is paulsboro, southern, new

jersey. a freight train has somehow managed to dump three rail cars into the water. here is the problem, it's carrying vinyl chloride, colorless gas, it has a weird sweet smell, they can detect it easily. it is highly flammable and toxic. they have evacuated a half mile radius from here, put schools in lockdown and three neighboring towns are being told to shelter in place, stay inside with all windows closed. the gas has leached into the water and the air. 18 people are in area hospitals with breathing problems and nausea. the u.s. coast guard is working this story. from them we have been able to learn that there are no fatalities from this. people are feeling very ill and they want people to be on the look out for the substance that is in the air. the gas is starting to dissipate, that is the good news. this happened only three and a half hours ago. it's a very active scene as you might imagine.

no word by the way on why the train went off the tracks. jon: they probably have to put people in hazmat suits to clean the stuff up. >> reporter: definitely. i mentioned that the u.s. coast guard is working it, they have a lot of other people on the scene, most them in the heavy hazmat clothing you're talking about. jon: thank you. jenna: new information on the possible health benefits of aspirin. we know you've heard a lot about this. back and forth about aspirin. there is a new study out that is suggesting aspirin can greatly reduce the risk for serious liver disease, like cancer. joining us from john hopkins hospital, john m mcclarey. this is a big one. this is from the national cancer institute. 300,000 people were in this study. what exactly is it telling us about aspirin and what would it be effective in liver disease or

liver cancer. >> it's showing another benefit of aspirin. aspirin has already been put out there by benefitting patients by proceed venting colon cancer and they have even found it to prevent breast cancer in some studies, this is the third major study to the liz, liver cans tere. it was not perfect but it shows dramatic reductions up to 47%. it is something to think about now and aspirin may be something to really consider. jenna: it's sort of interesting when you think about taking a medication and giving your liver something extra to process what about the risk, doctor, to just taking aspirin for a longtime, ten, 20, 30 years, is there something to consider there? >> in general aspirin is recommended for people at risk for developing certain cancers. for normal healthy every day people we no longer recommend aspirin because of that risk of gi pleading. people can get ulcers and other gi problems. aspirin probably works by

reducing body inflammation. a lot of the dietary stuff we eat nowadays probably causes generalized inflammation and that inflammation is what may be leading to some of these forms of cancer. jenna: we heard about inflammation in the body linked to sugar. real quick, what should we ask our doctor before giving ourselves aspirin? is there one or two questions we should ask? >> the most important kweus are there things in the diet to change to decrease generalized inflammation like eating more balanced omega 3 and 6, balanced fatty acids, less sugar. if i have a lot of inflammation can i take aspirin and will it be safe in my gi track. jenna: do you take aspirin every day. >> i don't. but i do plan on starting to take it once i turn 50. jenna: that's interesting. we have to get your take on this new study as well.

another one that has been on the web all week. i'm sure some of our viewers have seen it. it's a new study that suggests that chemicals that are being used to treat furniture, like couches, are making people sick, and those chemicals are flame retardant chemicals that in some cases the government requires furniture makers to use because of certain regulations. just, what do you think about this study, how concerned should we be? >> this study was a wake up call for a lot of couch potatoes out there. this study in the journal of environmental science and technology showed that and average there are 44 different chemicals in the couches that were sampled in different u.s. homes. some of these chemicals are known to be of concern, they've already been banned in babies' clothes, they are believe to be cancer causing in high doses.

>> is it from sitting on the couches, breathing in the air, exactly how do you get exposed to it? >> no one has made the connection between what is in the couch, these chemicals and health. but it is known that these chemicals exist in the couch and this study simply described the variation and the main type of chemicals in koups, and the authors of the study say let's try to keep your couches clean and don't save a couch for 15 or 20 years like most people do. jenna: if you have a really nice couch -- you know, doc, i think about our viewers with this. if you watch the news today we are already telling people b be ware of the fiscal cliff, an islamic egypt, a nuclear iran and if you want to sit on your couch this weekend be ware of that as well. is there anything that we can do? the couch is something that we have control over we hope. you say keep it clean but can we buy a couch without the chemicals in it.

>> 60% of the couches study did not have a label indicating that the chemical tkals were there. while i agree we have bigger public health threats out there in the world than our couches it is something to ask about when you buy a couch. public studies lag behind. it figures out a lot of time to figure out the health consequences of a lot of this stuff. it did with cigarettes, it did with aspirin and now with couches. jenna: nice to see you again. thank you as always. >> good to be with you, jenna. jon: republicans responding to president obama's opening bid in the fiscal cliff negotiations, what one senior g.o.p. source on capitol hill told fox news and what it could mean for the economy and your paycheck. plus, palestinians take to the streets after a historic vote at the u.n., new reaction from the middle east in a live report next. having you ship my gifts couldn't be easier.

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jenna: just in, new reaction in the middle east now to what happened yesterday. here is what it looked like in the west bank last night and in gaza as well. this is the type of video we saw in reaction to the u.n.'s vote granting palestinians nonmember observer state status. so that is the reaction there. there is certainly reaction out of israel as well. reaction from the united states. david lee miller is live in

jerusalem with the latest on what this all means. david lee? >> reporter: jenna, hours after the controversial vote at the needed nations the israeli government made its own controversial announcement the government here saying it would go ahead with the construction of some three how housing units in jersey as well as west bank settlements. the government here though for the most part having very low-key response to the vote, not implementing any previously threatened sanctions against the palestinian authority. the u.n. vote gives palestinians u.n. status as a nonvoting observer state. the important part of that, with pre-1967 borders. on paper at least the resolution divides jerusalem, putting one of the holiest sites of jews under the control of palestinians, the western wall. the spokesman for the prime minister says the decision is no substitute for negotiations. >> as palestinians wake up this morning they will see nothing has really changed and the truth is nothing will change if they continue

to boycott israel and boycott peace talks. >> reporter: and as you mentioned there were celebrations in arab neighborhoods in jerusalem, ramallah and elsewhere on the west bank including fireworks. what is really noticeable this vote for the moment united palestinian factions. for the first time in years the political party of the palestinian president, abbas, fatah party, had demonstrations with hamas and islamic jihad. there were demonstrations even in gaza. although hamas initially opposed the vote, the militant group did change its position. the leadership of hamas though making one thing very clear today, that despite its endorsement of the u.n. vote, jenna, it has not in any way changed its position on a two-state solution. hamas still refuses to recognize the state of israel. so the more things change the more they stay the same. the jenna. jenna: well-put, david lee. we certainly have a lot more questions ahead in the new year for sure.

david lee miller live in jerusalem. david lee, thank you. jon: some new information now on the looming fiscal cliff negotiations. strong words from republican leadership after president obama's opening bid. the president wants $1.6 trillion in new taxes, $50 billion in new stimulus spending, and expanded powers for the president to raise the federal debt limit without getting any approval from congress. a senior house gop source calls the president's plan, quote, absurd. and provides a 6-point explanation to back it up. is the economy headed for that fiscal cliff? is all of this negotiating dead in the water? let's bring in our panel. monica crowley, radio talk show host and author of monomemo.com. jewelry roginsky former political advisor to senator frank lautenberg of new jersey. both fox news contributors. you say the president is not interested in compromise at all?

>> no. i have just wrote a whole book about this called, what the bleep just happened. i traced first four years of his presidency. anytime he proposed a economic proposal or physical proposal it contained the exact same elements, which is tax hikes, more spending, not less, no entitlement reform and pushing up the debt limit as far and as fast as possible. this should come as no big surprise here. it is not a big mystery who this guy is. a pure leftist ideologue who will not compromise. jon: julie, he ran a platform saying let's raise the two top tax rates in this country. if he did that would raise $850 billion in revenue. he is asking for a trillion six. he is asking for twice what he campaigned on. >> first and foremost republicans have to understand we have an election and people spoke on that particular topic. jon: wasn't but did the people say, we'll give you double the taxes you said you wanted?

>> 60% said do you want taxes raised on those 2%. that is pew poll. this is completely threer on part of republicans or democrat. the president will not get thing a vest give position he will get ultimately. what is he doing smartly, finally, mr. president, after four years learns to how use the bully pulpit. i used to republicans start by give being you half a loaf. he is at $1.7 trillion, excuse me, beforehand during the fiscal budget talks of 2011 and lowered deficit 1.7 trillion dollars 10 years. he already compromised on that. what he is saying start from my position. republicans you propose what you want to propose and we'll talk about it. the republicans haven't propose anything yet. >> excuse me. paul ryan passed two years of budgets to deal with -- >> not fiscal cliff. >> republicans have plenty of plans on the table in terms of tax reform and entitlement reform and spending reform all of which

we need to do. this conversation assumes the president doesn't want to go over the fiscal cliff. i disagree. i think he does. i think he wants all the tax rates to go up. you can argue the politics of this. he needs revenue to come in. he wants more spending, not less. wants 1.2 trillion dollars in defense cuts because he wants to cut the military and wants an unlimited credit card in terms being allowed unilaterally to raise the debt limit. he wants all of these things and he knows he will not get blamed for it. the republicans will get blamed for it no matter what happens. the gop will get blamed for it because the mia is protective the president. he has nothing to lose, jon. he is willing to go over the cliff. >> i think what he is say take us over the cliff and vote with the democrats and dare republicans not vote it for 90% of the americans wouldn't be affected by top two tax rates. politician long last realistic how to negotiate in washington he finally understands what you need to

do is come and say this is my position. republicans give us your position and we'll negotiate that way as opposed to coming to the table, john boehner i give you 50% of what you want. >> that would work with a normal presidency but there is nothing in obama's history, past or pattern to suggest any compromise. >> we had a grand bargain agreement until paul ryan, eric cantor torpedoed it. >> obama was the one who pulled rug out from that last time when he doubled amount of revenue and tax hikes. >> and during the budget control act of 2011 the president did work with congress to lower by 1.7 trillion, 1.7 trillion, dollars, debt reduction. jon: this president couldn't get his own budget through the senate. >> zero democrat votes. >> when was last time you had any president isn't a budget that was verbatim adopted by any house of congress? never? never happened in the history -- >> as far as a vote from his own party? that is crazy. >> never seen any president submit any budget. jon: these two didn't feel like fighting today.

>> no, we love each other. jon: thank you, julie and monica. we'll have you back again. >> pleasure, thank you. jon: jenna. jenna: a brutal bus attack caught on video, what happened next that left the victim with serious injuries the latest own police efforts to find the attacker. leading automakers are competing to design the ultimate police car. adam housley is there with a sneak-peek. adam? >> reporter: jenna, famous for the car culture here in california. famous for the chp. imagine getting pulled over in one of these? mercedes version. we have a bunch of others to show you. coming up what the future cop car might look like. [ mother ] you can't leave the table till you finish your vegetables. [ clock ticking ] [ male announcer ] there's a better way... v8 v-fusion. vegetable nutrition they need, fruit taste they love. could've had a v8. or...try kids boxes!

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you wouldn't want your doctor doing your job, the pitch! so why are you doing his? whoa! only your doctor can determine if your persistent heartburn is actually something more serious like acid reflux disease. over time, stomach ac can damage the lining of your esophagus. for many, prescription nexium not only provides 24-hour heartburn relief, but can also help heal acid-related erosions in the lining of your esophagus. talk to your doctor about the risk for osteoporosis-related bone fractures and low magnesium levels with long-term use of nexium. possible side effects include headache, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. other serious stomach conditions may still exist. let your doctor do his job. and you do yours. ask if nexium is right for you. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. jon: just in, the republican controlled house has just voted to pass what is called the stem jobs act. that is an act that increases the number of visas issued to foreignerses, especially those who bring skills in the area of

science, technology, math, that kind of thing. it also makes it easier for their families to remain in this country, especially families of permanent residents or, permanent residents to bring their families to the u.s. democrats don't like this bill but it passed 245-to 139. we'll continue to keep you updated on the progress of that bill. jenna: one question being asked today out in california. what is the ultimate police car? that is what a competition at the los angeles auto show is trying to find out and several automakers from honda to gm, to bmw and mercedes are in a race to create the most sophisticated police equipment on four or even two wheels. adam housley is live at the los angeles auto show with more on this. adam? >> reporter: yeah, take a look at the energy fours. this is from mercedes-benz. one of six you talked about, different versions of possible futuristic police car. this is massive.

we'll slap on the decals to make it a police car. california famous for car culture and chp, the show, chps. look at clearance on this thing, and actually powered by on top of rain water. it would ideally turn it into hydrogen. it never rains in southern california. when it does it would be used to power the vehicle. one of many very cool and high-tech options out there car companies talk about. in fact when you talk to the design teams, these design teams are the best in the world they have some pretty cool concepts them settle. -- themselves. take a listen. >> this vehicle flies. it has two inductive fans and it was designed to really pay homage to that tradition of the chp motorcycle cop. >> there is pursue going on the drones are released and they have a device to send out an electromagnetic impulse to disable the electronics of the car which

is chased. >> reporter: there are six major car manufacturers who took part in the contest, the fun contest. one they took very seriously. everybody from gm. to mercedes-benz. subaru actually won overall. some of the concepts were small. everybody had a digital presentation. some like mercedes-benz, an actual unit on the floor. when you talk to the california huy way patrol, he was excited about how interested the companies were in trying to make them safer on the road and more efficient at their jobs. take a listen. >> i think about things like pursuit termination devices. having ability to stop a police pursuit without having a need to chase them. they're way ahead of me. they're already thinking about that. and they're implementing and building designing thinks that would stop that. that is what i'm most interested. how do you do police work, taking human element out and putting technology on board? >> reporter: every single one of these technologies

onboard, all included a fuel cell, guys. some cop cars they believe could be out by 2025. a couple by 2050. almost all of them had some sort of drone situation or ability to turn off a car so you don't have to chase it anymore. trace wouldn't have to do car chases from los angeles. guys in cop cars would take them off. jenna: that would take away the fun potentially following --. >> reporter: not so much for us in news. jenna: what a cool contest and cool job to design some of those cars, adam. we'll watch for them on the road some day. have fun out there. >> reporter: absolutely. thanks, guys. jon: well the world is mourning the loss of marvin miller, the legendary executive decide tuesday. he transformed the world of sports but it is still not in the hall of fame. we'll talk about why next. more . no, it's worse -- look, our taxes are about to go up.

not the taxes on our dividends though, right? that's a big part of our retirement. oh, no, it's dividends, too. the rate on our dividends would more than double. but we depend on our dividends to help pay our bills. we worked hard to save. well, the president and congress have got to work together to stop this dividend tax hike. before it's too late.

jon: big controversy in the basketball world right now has one of our camera operators keith especially upset. the san antonio spurs in hot water with the nba. after intentionally benching four top players in last night's game against the miami heat, a game that spurs eventually lost. commissioner david stern called the move unacceptable. he said sanctions against the spurs will be forthcoming. is this fair? jim gray is a sportscaster and fox news contributor. you don't like what the spurs did? >> i don't like it at all. i think it is very disrespectful. really disgraceful to do that to the fans, national tv audience on tnt and those who pay the top dollar. highest tiered ticket price for those in miami to see san antonio spurs. they only come once a year. it is wrong not to have the four guys in arena. jon: he has done this before. that's what keith tells me

before. he had done this before with tim duncan and other players, when, you know, they're getting up there in years and gives them a rest. >> he did it during the lockout season. they were playing three games in three night and back-to-back-to-back. there were different rules pause of the lockout. he has probably done it at other times when they have gotten ready for playoffs and you don't do it in the 15th game of the season. or possible playoff preview for the finals. it is not right. once you tell the fans games don't matter, once you send out that message why should anybody come to the arena? jon: the nba ticket is pretty expensive ticket these dice. >> $70 was the cheapest fare to get in last night. jon: but, you know, they came pretty close to winning the game. one could argue leaving his best talent at home isn't necessarily a bad thing. >> that was the outcome. it is irrelevant to what it is that we're talking about. did anybody want to pay a nickel to go see it.

iago splitter pay? i have nothing against him? i'm picking his name out of the hat. you can pick others. nobody knows who they are. that is not what is at issue here. can you imagine if michael jordan and chicago bulls were coming to town, the one opportunity to see them and you didn't get to see them because phil jackson at that time decided he needed rest, the disappointment? put that into the fans. miami heat who want to see not just national stars but international stars. tim duncan. tony parker. several olympics, several nba championships. no good way to slice it and not a good thing he did even though i understand and totally respect greg pop owe very much. one of the best coaches in the nba. his ultimate thing to win the championship if he had to sacrifice a game, older guys, but it is not right. jon: marvin miller is another sports controversy we're following. didn't make it to the hall of fame before he died. there is word that they may

get him there posthumously quickly. should he? >> abs slautly. revolutionized the sports, the sports we now watch today, free agency, arbitration, all these things, players getting paid properly. he changed it. curt flood lawsuit back in the late '60s was part of the reason. it is why sports where they are and he was a big part of it. jon: jim gray, good to have you on [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare...

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jon: all the nice talk about a compromise on the fiscal cliff gone now. the white house and congressional republicans seem to be digging in their heels, and americans are bracing for what could be some very real and very painful consequences. one person in missouri not so worried about the fiscal cliff. he or she is ready for a huge payday. powerball officials there set to reveal one to have two winners of that jackpot topping half a billion dollars. we'll tell you who it is. and this photo was just recently taken, but it's already iconic.

a new york city cop buying boots for a homeless man on a bitterly cold night. you'll hear from the officer coming up. brand new stories and breaking news on this second hour of ow howe. "happening now." jenna: we're going straight to the president who's in pennsylvania. he's actually at a toy factory, that's what's behind him. in this factory th makes kinects brand toys, the president making this appearance to talk about a fiscal cliff as well. so we're going to listen in to what he has to say potentially about these negotiations. [cheers and applause] >> i want to thank michael erickson, robert glickman and the inventer of kinects, joel glickman, for hosting me today and giving me a great tour. where'd they go? stand up, stand up so everybody can see you guys. there they are. [cheers and applause]

i just noticed we've got a couple outstanding members of congress here. we've got allyson schwartz. now, i just finished getting a tour of the kinects workshop. i have to say, it makes me wish that joel had invented this stuff a little sooner when i was a kid. back then you couldn't really build a roller coaster out of your erector set. and i also got a chance to meet some of the folks who have been working around the clock to keep up with the christmas rush, and that's a good thing. you know, these guys are santa's extra elves here. they manufacture almost 3,000 kinects pieces every minute, and every box that ends up on store shelves in 30 countries is stamped "made in america."

and that's something to be proud of. [cheers and applause] that's something to be proud of. by the way, i hope the camera folks had a chance to look at some of the kinects, including that flag. and, you know, joe biden was in costco, he wanted to buy some of this stuff -- [laughter] but i told him he had too much work to do. i wasn't going to have him building roller coasters all day long. [laughter] now, of course, santa delivers everywhere. i've been keeping my own naughty and nice list for washington. so you should keep your eye on who gets some kinects this year. [laughter] there are going to be some members of congress who get 'em l and some who don't. [laughter] [applause]

this is a wonderful time of year. it's been a few weeks since a long election finally came to an end, and obviously, i couldn't be more honored to be back in the white house. but i'm already missing the time that i spent on the campaign visiting towns like this and talking to folks like you. >> we love you! >> i love you back, that's why -- [cheers and applause] and one of the benefits of traveling and getting out of the white house is it gives you a chance to have a conversation with the american people about what kind of country do we want to be and what kind of country do we want to leave to our kids. i believe america only thrives when we have a strong and growing middle class, and i believe we're at our best when everybody who works hard has a chance to get ahead. that's what i believe. and i know that's what the founders of this company believe

as well. we were talking about these guys' dad and who, i understand, just passed away at the age of 101. so these guys have good genes. [laughter] in addition to inventive minds. and the story of generations starting businesses, hiring folks, making sure that if you work hard, you can get ahead, that's what america's all about. and that's at the heart of the plan that i've been talking about all year. i want to reward manufacturers like this one and small businesses that create jobs here in the united states, not overseas. [applause] and, by the way, this is a company, one of the few companies in the toy industry, that have aggressively moved jobs back here. you know, that's a great story to tell. [cheers and applause]

because we've got the best workers in the world, and the most productive workers in the world. and so we need champions for american industry creating jobs here in the united states. i want to give more americans the chance to earn the skills that businesses are looking for right now. and i want to give our children the kind of education that they need in the 21st century. i want america to lead the world in research and technology and clean energy. i want to put people back to work rebuilding our roads and our bridges and our schools. and i want to do all this while bringing down our deficits in a balanced and responsible way. [applause] now, on this last point you've probably heard a lot of talk in washington and in the media about the deadlines that we're

facing on jobs and taxes and investments. this is not some run-of-the-mill debate. this isn't about which political party can come out on top in negotiations. we've got important decisions to make that are going to have a real impact on businesses and families all across the country. our ultimate goal, our long-term goal is to get our long-term deficit under control in a way that is balanced and is fair. that'd be with good for businesses, for our economy, for future generations. and i believe both parties can and will work together in the coming weeks to get that done. we know how that gets done. we're going to have to raise a little more revenue, we've got to cut out spending we don't need building on the trillion dollars of spending cuts we've already made, and if we combine those two things, we can create a path where america's paying its bills while still being able to make investments in the things we need to grow like

education and infrastructure. so we know how to do that. but, you know, in washington nothing's easy, so, you know, there's going to be some prolonged negotiations. and all of us are going to have to get out of our comfort zones to make that happen. i'm willing to do that, i'm hopeful that enough members of congress in both parties are willing to do that as well. we can solve these problems. but where the clock is really ticking right now is on middle class tax. at the end of the year, middle class taxes that are currently in place are set to expire. middle class tax cuts that are or currently in place are set to expire. there are two things that can happen. if congress does nothing, every family in america will see their income taxes automatically go up on january 1st.

every, every family, everybody here you'll see your taxes go up on january 1st. i'm assuming that doesn't sound too good to you. >> no. >> that's sort of like the lump of coal you get for christmas. [laughter] that's a scrooge christmas. a typical middle class family of four would see their income taxes go up by about $2200. that's for a typical family. it'd be more for some folks. that's money a lot of families just can't afford to lose. that's less money to buy gas, less money to buy groceryies, in some cases it means tougher choices between paying the rent and saving for college, it means less money to buy more kinects. [laughter] yeah. just the other day economistses said that if income taxes go up on the middle class, people will

spend nearly $200 billion less in stores and online. and when folks are buying fewer clothes or cars or toys, that's not good for our businesses, it's not good for our economy, it's not good for employment. so that's one path. congress does nothing, we don't deal with this looming tax hike on middle class families and starting in january everybody gets hit with this big tax hike, and businesses suddenly see fewer customers, less demand, the economy -- which we've been fighting for four years to get out of this, you know, incredible economic -- jenna: well, the president talking at a toy factory in pennsylvania about this looming fiscal cliff we've been talking so much about. a toy factory, of course, tis the season for the holidays and an american company that makes american-made toys. the president mentioning his naughty and nice list he may have for congress. a few guesses on who's on either

side of that list. speaking of which, speaker boehner's going to be talking at 12:45 in response in part to what the president's saying here. you can watch the rest of the president's statement live at foxnews.com. jon: stephen hayes is a writer for the weekly standard, a fox news contributor as well, let's get his take on what the president is doing. you have to admire the politics of it, i suppose, stephen. he's telling people, look, middle class taxes are going to go up if that evil congress doesn't do something. >> right. and nothing says, you know, i respect my opponents like comparing them to naughty school children. but, look, i mean, i don't begrudge the president the opportunity to make his case publicly. i know some republicans have said he should be leading these negotiations, but he's the president. he can go out and make a case. the bigger problem i have is that he's framing the argument in such a way that oversimplifies it and doesn't do justice to the position the republicans have had which is

we're okay with revenues going up in one way or another, presumably by eliminating some loopholes, but we want serious spending reductions, and most especially structural entitlement reform in exchange for blessing those revenue increases. the president's, i think, been mischaracterizing what republicans want to do in his effort to get what he wants. jon: and he really hasn't outlined any spending cuts, has he? >> no, he hasn't. i mean, if you talk to the white house, talk to democrats on capitol hill, they'll point back to his budget proposals, but he hasn't done anything serious. those budget proposals, as you were discussing earlier, didn't actually get any votes from either party when they were put before congress before. so it's not as if the president even in the debates, the earlier debates over the debt ceiling, it's not as if the president actually went forward and put on paper the kinds of entitlement reforms that he's willing to consider. now, republicans have done this, and it was part of the central part of the presidential

campaign. paul ryan put out a budget that passed the house of representatives twice, very specific and detailed proposals about how to save medicare, how to reform medicaid. there have been discussions about how to handle social security. so the republicans actually get points for being specific. the president, on the other hand, does not, and that's what i think republicans want to see, and it's the kind of thing that could lead to some kind of a deal. jon: it is going to be interesting to watch over the next month. stephen hayes -- >> interesting is one word. jon: yeah. [laughter] thank you. [laughter] best i could come up with. >> that's good, i like it. jon: stephen hayes from the weekly standard, thanks. jenna: dynamic, uncertain, i'm sure there's a lot of words. jon: tumultuous, perhaps. [laughter] jenna: the debate over the terror attack in benghazi taking a nasty turn. a news commentator accusing senator john mccain of racism in his dealings with u.n. ambassador susan rice. is this explosive charge out of bounds? our news watch panel takes a closer look at that.

plus, a new president getting set to take over in the mexico as violence and bloodshed soars in a brutal war with the drug cartels. can he get a handle on this growing problem just south of our border? we'll take a closer look next. and i took nyquil, but i'm still stubbed up. [ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus liquid gels speeds relief to your worst cold symptoms plus has a decongestant for your stuffy nose. thanks. that's the cold truth! campbell's has 24 new soups that will make it drop over, and over again. ♪ from jammin' jerk chicken, to creamy gouda bisque. see what's new from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do.

jenna: well, right now mexico is getting ready for a changing of the guard. tomorrow enrique peña nieto will become president to our neighbor to the south, and you see him meeting with our president earlier this week. the president-elect will replace felipe calderon. the new leader might have a short honeymoon, though, jefeses a raging drug war in his country where the violence is taking a terrible toll on the people in mexico and also people here in the united states. a few facts for you here, more than 57,000 people have been killed since the drug war started more than six years ago, 27 people killed every day in mexico or more than one person per hour.

now, this year the pace picked up. more than 10,000 people killed through last month, or one person every 40 minutes. in addition to the murders, the mexican government report out today says 25,000 people are still missing related to the drug cartels, some questions about that report, but it's big news today. and as far as drugs go, 95% of cocaine used in this country comes here through mexico, that's according to the fbi, and mexican drug cartels are operating in more than 1,000 of our cities according to the latest data from 2009-through 2010. we wanted to take a look at all this, lauren joins us by phone from mexico city where this inauguration is taking place. lauren, tell us a little bit about the new president of mexico. who is he, where does he come from, what does he bring to the table? >> reporter: hi, jenna, sure. he was previously the governor

of mexico state which is the state that surrounds mexico city and is the most populist. he won with 38% of the vote, so it's by no means a majority of mexicans that voted for him, but he does come in with a good measure of legitimacy, and mexicans are now on pins and needles about what's going to transpire. jenna: you know, he's known a little bit in this country as being this young, charismatic, new leader of mexico. he has a little bit of that reputation as well, lauren. i was reading about president calderon that's on his way out, obviously x how he is considered a wartime president because the war against the cartels that the mexican government has been engaged in. what does it look like for this new president? will he be as tough as calderon? how does that situation look like it's going to develop? >> he certainly inherits the drug war from fleep calderon.

we don't have details on exactly what the strategy is going to be, but it seems the incoming president is going to focus more on the safety and security of mexican communities. now, what that means exactly, we don't know in terms of the drug war. calderon followed what is known as sort of a kingpin strategy, trying to take down top bosses of key cartels. that strategy has worked in the sense that the administration was able to capture 25 of 37 kingpins, but it has in a way created more and more violence for the mexican people. peña nieto has said he wants to lower homicide rates and lower extortion and kidnapping rates in the cub. jenna: it's an interesting story we'll continue to follow, lauren, thank you very much, our colleague from fox news latino. for more on the issue and the coverage of the inauguration of this new president as well, check it out at fox news

latino.com throughout this weekend. jon, you know, just in, we're getting some new information on some of the winners of that big powerball jackpot. moments ago a couple from missouri stepped forward to claim their share of the $538 million prize -- $588 prize. mark hill, a 52-year-old mechanic and his wife cindy hold one of the tickets. they will split the prize with whoever holds the ticket sold at a convenience store in phoenix. no one has yet come forward with the arizona ticket. let's hope they didn't lose it. that's your powerball winners, or at least half of them. a new study showing only three u.s. cities are technically in an economic recovery. we'll tell you which ones they are and the sad fate of one iconic american city. plus, you might remember this horrific scene from san bruno, california, a deadly natural gas explosion that leveled an entire neighborhood.

now there's word a major u.s. city could be sitting on a ticking time bomb. for over 60,000 california foster children,

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christmas used to be my favorite. i just don't expect anything. what if santa can't find me? to help, sleep train is holding a secret santa toy drive. bring your gift to any sleep train, and help keep the spirit of the holidays alive. not everyone can be a foster parent, but anyone can help a foster child. jon: hard to forget the images that came out of that horrific natural gas explosion back in 2010 in a neighborhood in san bruno, california. remember this? that explosion killed eight people, destroyed 55 homes and damaged more than 120 others. there are growing concerns now that the city of boston is sitting on thousands of underground gas leaks, and several are big enough to set off an explosion like the one in san bruno.

molly line live in boss upon -- boston for us now. >> reporter: a new study released by boston university shows they found more than 3,000 leaks, and it raises concerns about everything from air quality to a rare risk of an explosion. there were two explosions across the country earlier this month, one a multistory building that was leveled in springfield, massachusetts, and another deadly blast out in indianapolis reminding all of us of just how powerful natural gas can be. and while the blast here in massachusetts was caused by human error, a pipe that was hit by a drill, the study conducted by boston university raises concerns about the aging infrastructure of one of the nation's oldest cities and just how quickly the old pipes here in boston can be replaced. now, while the majority of leakr nathan phillips and his team found six locations where levels were potentially high enough to cause an explosion. they were, of course, fixed, but the professor says this is a wake-up call to all the parties involved in the gas supply.

take a listen. >> these situations, they may be rare, but when they do happen, they can have big impacts and, therefore, it's not something we can just ignore. if something was a low probability and low or zero impact, we can ignore it. but if it's low probability but high impact, we need to be careful about it. >> reporter: professor phillips also wallets to draw attention to the fact that he believes many historic cities across the country are facing the same problem. state officials here, however, want to reassure the public that the streets of boston are safe. >> the leaks he's talking about are what are called grade three leaks which are really tiny, tiny leaks. so they are not a risk of explosion. also they're tiny leaks that are not migrating so, no, they don't cause a risk of explosion. >> reporter: the state also has a program to encourage gas companies to fix leaks as quickly as possible and repair

ages pipes -- aging pipes. one of the main gas suppliers here in the state of massachusetts says in the past three years they've replaced approximately 300 miles of aging pipe here in massachusetts. jon? jon: yeah, and hats off to the professor for, you know, showing some real world work to his students. i mean, they seem to do some good stuff there. >> reporter: yeah, fascinating. jon: molly line, thank you. jenna: well, the nation's recovery is slowly recovering from the recession, at least that's what we hear. only three major american cities are really bouncing back so far. harris has more on this and who are the lucky three, harris? [laughter] >> reporter: yeah, exactly, jenna. the brookings institution, a washington-based research group, looked at unemployment levels among other things in our nation's leading cities. let's start though, jenna, with the good news of the story, because if you're in knoxville, tennessee, if you're in dallas, texas or pittsburgh, pa, life may be feeling less desperate.

there's evidence of job growth and expansion there. but i should point out the survey that looked for any signs of recovery has just identified those three cities as the only ones in the entire country which are experiencing a measurable comeback from the so-called great depression. so knoxville, dallas and pittsburgh are in a very small club. looking deeply at the numbers, we see knoxville informed in infrastructure -- invested in infrastructure, often spending money from the government through its federal stimulus program. and dallas was not hit as hard as many cities in the housing industry plunge. and then there's this coming to light today, the mayor of detroit now admitting his city has reached a breaking point, bankruptcy on a the table, we're told, but the mayor hoping to avoid that by furloughing some of the 11,000 city workers, and that will begin in january. quickly, though, back to the good news. three of our 76 recognized major metro areas are feeling some relief. doesn't sound good when you put

it that way, but that's the deal. long way to go yet, jenna. jenna: that's the context, but it is 3 of 76. all right, harris, thank you. jon: pittsburgh did a great job of diversifying when steel sort of went away, and it shows. jenna: here i thought it had something to do about the football team. jon: i'm a bronco fan, it's hard for me to love the steelers. but they do play good football. folks on the west coast getting hit with wild weather. flooding, power outages and another storm on the way. a live update from the fox news extreme weather center. and this act of real kindness touching people all over the country, really all over the globe. a new york city cop digs into his own pockets to buy boots and socks for a homeless man on a bitterly cold night. next, you'll hear from the officer himself. but here's what the tourist who snapped that famous photo has to say about it. >> he did not see us, he did not see me, and he had boots in his

hand, and i heard him quite clearly say i have these size 12 all-weather boots for you, let's take care of you. and the gentleman sat down against the wall, and i'm telling you, his face lit up. this is america. we don't let frequent heartburn come between us and what we love. so if you're one of them people who gets heartburn and then treats day afr day... block the acid with prilosec otc and don't get heartburn in the first place! [ male announcer ] e pill eachmorning. 24 hours. zero heartbur now is a good time to think about your options. are you looking for a plan that really meets your needs and your budget? as you probably know, medicare only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses.

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jon: a fox news weather alert out of california now where heavy rain and whipping winds are causing power outages and monstrous flooding. just the latest in a string of

storms slamming the west coast. residents are tying up boats as big waves come rolling in, but some of the worst weather is still to come. rick reichmuth is in the fox news extreme weather center with a look at that. >> reporter: it's been a really rainy month, around 10 inches of rain, and now a lot more rain coming to the same area. anywhere from around northern california down to just north of the santa barbara area is where the direction of the storm is going today, at least most of the moisture. and you can see that here. heavy rain come anything around san francisco and in towards sacramento. a lot of this area prone to flooding, and we're going to see some rapid river rises here. you see this snow, for the most part it's been a pretty warm storm system, so it's been mostly rain, and the snow has been relegated to the higher elevations. most of the pass levels where people drive, those are all rain and not snow, but if it were snow, it'd be a lot more. we will see a few feet of snow falling across the higher

terrain, but for the most part we're talking about rain, and it's going to continue for the next number of days. this disturbance is bringing a lot of tropical moisture in, call it the pineapple pine ap express. we have the one storm today, a bit of a break tomorrow and then the next batch comes in heavy. and, again, that's by sunday. by the time this is done, we're going to see probably another 10 inches of rain in addition to what has already fallen, so that's going to continue to cause all of the flooding concerns. looks like there's another storm behind that for tuesday, and then we might get a four or five-day break, and we're certainly hoping for that. one other story with this, if you've got that bad weather someplace, something else has to happen somewhere else, and that's what's happening across the plains. look at these temperatures today, temps into the 60s, a lot of people 15-20 degrees above your averages. that'll continue on for much of the weekend, so the weekend very nice across the plains, but the west will continue to see this

very, very rough weather. jon: jenna is sending inflatable boats to all her relatives in the san francisco area. >> reporter: i bet she is. jon: what a mess. i was watching "fox & friends" on my office monitor this morning, and all of a sudden i see the most, well, surprising sight, there you are doing what exactly? jenna: he's not the one in the santa hat, is he? no. >> reporter: i am not. i'm on the left side of that picture there, the one standing still at this point, but not standing but hanging still. i tell you, terrifying thing. it's a 20-story building, it's the third year i've done it with these guys. it's part of stanford, connecticut's, ringing in the holiday season for them, and we rappel down this building, and you'd think i might be a little used to it, but it's just scary is all there is to it. jenna: you look good, rick. >> reporter: i look like i'm not moving at all. jenna: yeah, we need a different angle. you can definitely tell it was high up -- there it is. that gives us more of the

adventure of it all. jon: very cool. 20 stories up, rick reichmuth. jenna: whoa! [laughter] cut the tape, cut the tape! jon: we're happy to report, he did make it to the ground safely, because he's now joining us from the extreme weather studio. jenna: that's right. [laughter] jon: atta boy, rick. jenna: anyone can do the weather in the studio, takes a real man to rappel off a building. jon: that'll get your palms sweating. jenna: well, we have to share this story with you because it's one of our favorites, really, of the entire week. a new york city police officer living up to the motto of new york's finest. on a frigid night a few weeks ago, this officer bought boots for his -- for this homeless man in times square, used his own money, saw this homeless man on the street and knew he had to do something. and a tourist who was there in the area took a picture of this simple act of kindness, and now it's become an internet sensation. anna coyman has more on the

background of how this whole thing came about. >> reporter: it's moving, isn't it? the officer really becoming the face of the holiday spirit around here. afceeing the barefoot, homeless man walking around during patrols, the officer opening his own wallet and bringing the man warm socks and durable boots. the photograph, taken by a tourist, going viral after being posted to the nypd facebook page. more than 520,000 users have liked it. the 25-year-old officer is seen kneeling down, helping the unidentified man put on the boots. he is surprised by all the media attention. >> you get calls from from all over the world, and people are saying, you know, thank you, you just can't help but feel humble about it. it's so amazing that people respect something i considered such a small helping hand. >> reporter: a tourist watched it all enfold. jennifer foster saying the officer didn't know she was taking the picture and is amazed by the moment.

>> honestly, what i think is his mom did something right, that's really what i think. every single police officer has a family. they all have friends, they are all touched by the things that today see, and regardless of how long we do this job, we still -- you can't help but turn your head, especially when you see something like that. >> he was an elderly gentleman, and his hands were shaking, and it was just too much. so i knelt down, i just helped him put the socks and boots on and helped him back up, and he started walking on his way. it was a great moment for the both of us, and i'll be able to -- thank you for jennifer, i'll be able to have that for the rest of my career. >> reporter: ray kelly giving officer depri mow these special cuff links. the officer keeping a copy of the receipt as a reminder that even when things get tough, others have it worse. -under-par-and-a-half what a good role model for all of us, especially be this time of year. anna, thank you very much. jon: great story.

they lost everything in superstorm sandy. now people in staten island are getting major boost. a secret santa visiting them and handing out hundred dollar bills. more on that coming up. also an anchor over on msnbc portraying senator john mccain as a racist for his criticism of u.n. ambassador susan rice. our news watch team, judith miller and kirsten powers, next with more thoughts on that.

jenna: there it is, sorry about that. we're getting breaking news out of casper, wyoming, there's a community college there, casper college, and the lotters indicate that -- reports indicate there was a shooting on campus. one dead, one wounded according to local reports. a college spokesperson saying at the time that he believes, according to what

from police, that the shooter is dead. we're still trying to work out, again, some of these new reports just into the newsroom of one dead, one wounded at this community college in casper, wyoming. as we hear more, we will bring you this breaking news. jon? jon: new questions out there, jenna, about racism after a television anchor goes on a rant about senator john mccain. msnbc's anchor toure making some very harsh remarks earlier this week, attacking senator mccain calling him old and white and saying he is tarring -- his word -- u.n. ambassador susan rice over her benghazi remarks. toure goes on to accuse the arizona republican of wrongly attacking rice because she is a much younger black woman. but in spite of those claims of racism, senator mccain improved both condoleezza -- approved both condoleezza rice and colin powell. judith miller, kirsten powers,

fox news contributors, both are part of our news watch panel today. kirsten, you have been pretty vocal about what he had to say here. >> yeah. well, and i've actually done a little twitter battle with him earlier today where he's doubling down on this, and he's claiming he hasn't called senator mccain racist, then he sort of has implied that again in the twitter comments. jon: senator mccain, who voted to approve -- >> yeah. when i brought that up, he said that's like saying all my best friends are black, i said, no, it's like saying he confirmed two black secretaries of state. but, you know, i think this is a very toxic, very dangerous, um, thing that's happening, and it didn't start with this person. it started, actually, with some congressional black caucus members coming out and saying isn't it so sad that whenever anything goes wrong, they pick on women and minorities in talking about susan rice. susan rice is a very accomplished person, she's a

rhodes scholar, she's very smart, and she shouldn't be talked about as if she's this child. she was out on five talk shows talking about benghazi. she should be asking questions. jon:side judy is nodding in apparent agreement. >> absolutely. i think it's reprehensible that now democrats seem to be attempting to change the subject by casting aspersions on the motivation of people who dare, dare criticize the administration's explanation of what happened or didn't happen in benghazi. i mean, i just really think it is outrageous to call somebody an old white guy and then accuse the critic of ray similar. what? -- racism. isn't it biased or bigoted to call someone an old white guy just for raising policy questions? jon: john bolton took a lot of heat when he served as u.s. ambassador to the united nations. >> yeah. and toure said to me on twit wither, well, mccain called

rice mentally inferior, which he never did. i said, well, when did she say this -- jon: i'm sorry to cut you off, but we have some breaking news. john boehner, the speaker of the house is speaking out now about the fiscal cliff, let's listen in. >> the bigger problem here, which is our national deficit and our national debt. this debt doesn't exist because we don't tax small businesses enough, it exists because washington continues to spend too much. and raising taxes on small businesses instead of taking a balanced approach that also cuts spending is wrong. it's only going to make it harder for our economy to grow. and if our economy doesn't grow, americans don't get new jobs. and the debt problem that we have will continue to threaten our children's future. as i said the day after the election, republicans are not seeking to impose our will on

the president. we're seeking a bipartisan solution that can pass both chambers of congress and be signed into law by the president in the coming days. now, during the campaign the president pledged to the american people that he would seek a balanced approach to addressing the debt, a combination of new revenues and spending cuts. so the day after the election i said the republican majority would accept new revenue as part of a balanced approach that includes real spending cuts and reforms. now, the white house took three weeks to respond with any kind of a proposal, and much to my disappointment, it wasn't a serious one. still, i'm willing to move forward in good faith. our original framework still stands. instead of raising tax rates, we can produce a similar amount of revenue, reforming the tax code

to close loopholes and lower tax rates. that's far better for the economy, and the american people actually favor that approach by two to one. they favor it even more when we can also show them that real spending cuts will, in fact, reduce the deficit. now, there have been many conversations over the last couple of years that could inform a solution. i hope the president will draw from those discussions and work with both parties to find common ground. solving the fiscal cliff in a manner that addresses the true drivers of our debt and saves american jobs will be a great way for the president to start his second term. and for the unity of our country and my colleagues, we're ready to work with the president to achieve those goals. >> reporter: on the issue of tax cuts, are you willing to

accept -- [inaudible] what's our final deadline on -- [inaudible] >> increasing tax rates draws money away from our economy that needs to be invested in our economy to put the american people back to work. it's the wrong approach. we're willing to put revenues on the table, but revenues that come from closing loopholes, getting rid of special interest deductions and not raising rates. we think it's better for the economy, pure and simple. and secondly, listen, the american people expect us to find common ground, to work together and to resolve this. and, frankly, sooner is better than later. >> [inaudible]

>> no, there's a stalemate. let's not kid ourselves. i'm not trying to make this more difficult. if you've watched me over the last three weeks, i've been very guarded in what i had to say, because i don't want to make it harder for me or the president or members of both parties to be able to find common ground. but when i come out the day after the election and make it clear that republicans will put revenue on the table, i took a great risk. and then the white house spends three weeks trying to develop a proposal, and they send one up here that calls for $1.6 trillion in new taxes, calls for a little -- not even $400 billion in cuts, and they want to have in this extra spending that's actually greater than the amount they're willing to cut. i mean, it's, it was not a serious proposal.

and so right now we're almost nowhere. >> [inaudible] >> a lot of ideas have been put on the table. we've had conversations, and i'm sure we'll continue to have conversations. >> [inaudible] [laughter] >> listen, most of you know me pretty well. what you see is what you get. and while i may be affable and someone that can work with members of both parties, which i've demonstrated over the 22 years that i've been here, i've also rather determined -- i'm also rather determined to solve our spending problem and to solve this looming debt crisis that is about to consume us. >> [inaudible] what do you want to do in terms of finish --

[inaudible] >> well, you could look at our budget from the last two years, and there are plenty of specific proposals, most of which were part of the conversation that the president and i had two years ago, or a year and a half ago. there have been discussions about many of those same issues this time. so there's a lot from the conversations that we have had to inform almost anybody of the kind of proposals that we're looking for. >> last question. >> [inaudible] the paul ryan plan -- [inaudible] >> i think the debt crisis that we face requires us to make serious decisions, and it requires us to make those decisions now. thank you, all. jon: john boehner, the speaker of the house, blasting president obama's proposals to solve the fiscal cliff crisis, saying that the president wants to impose $1.6 trillion in new taxes and only about $400 billion in cuts.

as you heard, the speaker says that the republicans are open to new revenues. they would like to achieve it by closing tax loopholes. that does not seem to be the way the direction is headed, and not a very optimistic assessment there from the speaker of the house, but we will continue to see which direction this all goes throughout the day and on through the month of december, i'm sure. let's get back into our discussion about what this msnbc anchor said with our news watch panel. judy miller is here. judy, to call somebody like senator mccain, who has a lengthy record of public service and his wartime service before that, to refer to him as, what, an old white guy who's losing his grip on power -- >> right. jon: that sounds racist in and of itself to me. >> it certainly sounded bigoted. and if anybody had said an old black guy, can you imagine what the outcry would have been? i mean, this is just inappropriate. and can moreover, his suggestion

that senator mccain was using this issue to, as a life raft -- those are his words, life raft -- to maintain his relevance to the political debate, that, too, is an insult that is completely unworthy of informed criticism. jon: overlooked in much of this is the fact that senator kelly ayotte, a woman -- >> of course. [laughter] jon: one of the principal opponents -- >> yeah. well, and she's the one who said she might put a hold on the nomination. susan collins of maine, you know, who democrats love has come out and been quite create call of rice as well. -- critical of rice as well. but it fits the storyline to focus on the angry white man. jon: you're a democrat, and you say that this charge that this whole thing is racist originated with democrats. >> well, i mean, the first people to come out and say it were a bunch of female congressional black caucus members at a press conference and made this accusation. and then it sort of has picked

up steam from then, and now it's become to oppose her nomination is to be racist. to say that she handled something incompetently -- which she did -- is to be racist. you know, you can't, you can't say women, you know, should be or, you know, that everybody should have equal opportunity positions, and then when they're held accountable, say you're racist or you're sexist. that's not -- there has to be some sort of gender or-based criticism or racial-based criticism, and i have yet to see this. jon: and give us a quick wrap on the way the mainstream media is reporting this. >> it's not just msnbc, it was the former "newsweek" correspondent, richard wolf, who said the attacks on susan rice were racist, and there was no other way to face it. this is outrageous, and it really stifles debate. you can have a policy disagreement without being bigoted or racist, and that's what this is, a policy dispute.

jon: judy miller and kirsten powers, thanks. >> thank you. jenna: well, on a lighter note, you could win a date with a 90-year-old woman for a good cause, and she is kind of an awesome woman. the date will seriously lighten your wallet though. the society for the prevention of cruelty to animals in los angeles is auctioning off an evening with betty white. the auction goes up on ebay monday, runs until december 10th. the minimum, minimum bid is already $1,000. that's jon scott money, right? no problem. jon: i would give $2,000 for a date with betty white. jenna: yeah? i think she's worth a lot more than that. she's really a character. the winner and three guests get to have dinner with white at one of her favorite restaurants, and proceeds from the auction will benefit the spca, l.a.'s 135th anniversary. white has been a member of the charity since 1949, so you know what? at 90, she's throwing her hat

into the ring, jon. she's ready for a date, but only to the highest bidder. jon: i still remember when she was a password panelist back when i was about this tall. love e betty white. jenna: all right, we'll expect your bid. we thank you so much for joining us, we hope you have a great day. jon: "america live" starts right now, have a great weekend. megyn: welcome to "america live," everyone, i'm megyn kelly. here's the president moments ago at a toy manufacturing company in pennsylvania. >> you should keep your eye on who gets some